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The Sistan region in Southeastern Iran is one of the world's most sensitive areas when it comes to sandstorms and wind erosion. One of the most influential factors in interpreting sandstorms is sand drift potential (DP), which is directly related to wind speed. Accurately, monitoring this phenomenon is still being determined, considering various temporal scales. Therefore, the main aim of this research is to analyze the trend of DP on monthly and annual scales. Our results showed that monthly variations of DP reached the highest and lowest values in July (609 VU) and January (47 VU), respectively. Blowing sand predominantly moved southeast, and the directional index fluctuated from 0.88 to 0.94. The annual DP was measured equal to 2700 VU, signifying a relatively high value when compared to other arid regions worldwide. The trend analysis results obtained from the Mann–Kendall test revealed both positive trends during the period 1987–2001 and negative ones from 2002 to 2016). However, the positive trend was found statistically insignificant. Furthermore, Sen's slope test results demonstrated that a negative trend could be observed with a steeper slope during July, September, and August, while a positive trend could be observed with a steeper pitch during November, December, and June. We recommend that land managers and stakeholders involved in controlling blowing sand using biological and physical methods should consider these trends in the Sistan region. Implementing nature-based solutions or control strategies should focus on these temporal sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid population growth and climate change are poised to significantly impact water resources and agriculture. Consequently, it becomes imperative to delve into the repercussions of climate change on agriculture and natural resources in developing nations. In this research, an economic–hydrological model was employed to assess the influence of climate change on water management and cropping patterns in the Eastern border catchment of Iran. The climatic data used in this study, spanning the years 1997–2022, encompassed daily rainfall and temperature records from the Khorasan and Sistan & Balouchestan meteorological organization, as well as the Iranian Statistical Center. Monthly water discharge data were obtained from the Khorasan and Sistan & Balouchestan regional water authority, while information on crop levels and agricultural inputs was collected from the Khorasan and Sistan & Balouchestan agricultural jihad organization. The findings reveal that areas dedicated to cultivating high-yield crops experienced a decrease when associated with high water consumption, whereas the cultivation areas of high-yield crops expanded when water consumption was reduced. The implementation of modern irrigation methods, such as pressurized irrigation, not only conserves valuable water resources but also enhances efficiency, ultimately resulting in decreased water consumption and increased production. Consequently, the provision of enhanced training programs aimed at educating farmers about these practices and facilitating their adoption can play a pivotal role in adapting to and mitigating the challenges posed by climate change. • Impact of Climate Change: Influence on water management and cropping patterns. • Data Sources: climatic data (1997–2022) from meteorological and water authorities. • Crop Area Dynamics: High-yield crop areas decreased with high water consumption while expanding with reduced consumption. • Irrigation Efficiency: to reduce water consumption and increase production. • Call for Action: Emphasis on farmer education and adoption of efficient practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural lands are sources and sinks of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The identification of the main drivers affecting GHGs is crucial for planning sustainable agronomic practices and mitigating global warming potential. The main aim of this research was to evaluate the impact of environmental drivers (soil temperature and water-filled pore space, WFPS) and crop residue rates on CO 2 , NO, and NO x fluxes under conventional tillage (CT) and no-tillage (NT) systems. The accuracy of Random Forest Regression (RFR), Multiple Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS), and General Linear Models (GLM) in predicting CO 2 , NO, and NO x fluxes were also assessed. In both CT and NT systems, CO 2 , NO, and NO x fluxes decreased with increasing WFPS. Increasing temperature resulted in higher CO 2 emissions and lower NO and NO x emissions. Higher residue rates resulted in significant increases in CO 2 emission, whereas the NO and NO x emissions increased by decreasing the ratio of residue. For CO 2 prediction, the RFR provided the largest R2 with the observed data. For NO–N and NO x -N prediction, RFR was the most efficient algorithm, but NO–N can be predicted with better accuracy. The output of this research highlights the importance of agronomic practices for climate mitigation, along with the possibility of using RFR to predict GHGs fluxes. • Increasing temperature increased CO 2 emissions and decreased NO and NO x emissions. • The highest NO and NO x emissions were observed in the residue removal treatment. • Increasing WFPS decreased CO 2 , NO, and NO x emissions. • The accuracy of the machine learning algorithm methods (RFR, MARS, and GLM) was evaluated. • RFR (among RFR, MARS, and GLM) had the highest accuracy in predicting emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the response of saffron to animal manure, and biological and chemical fertilizer in an arid climate, an experiment was performed as split plots based on a randomized complete blocks design with three replications during three consecutive crop growth seasons (2015–2018) at the Research Farm of University of Gonabad, Iran. The experimental treatments included application (60 t ha−1) and non-application (control) of manure as the main plot and the use of biosulfur (5 kg ha−1), biophosphate (3 L ha−1), nitroxin (3 L ha−1), chemical fertilizer (150, 100, and 100 kg ha−1 of urea, triple superphosphate, and potassium sulfate, respectively), and no fertilizer application (control) as the sub-plot. The results showed a highly significant response of the quantitative traits of saffron to the application of manure, which increased the leaf, flower, and corm indices of saffron by a mean of 15.1–35.7% than control. The interaction effect of manure with biological and chemical fertilizers for leaf, flower, and weeds indices of saffron was significant. There was no significant difference between the interaction treatments of manure and chemical fertilizer with nitroxin and biophosphorus fertilizers in most of the mentioned traits in the three experiment years. The simultaneous application of these fertilizers increased the average by about 60, 105, 135, 110, 165, and 55% of the leaf dry weight, the number of flowers, fresh flower yield, dry flower yield, dry stigma yield, and weed dry weight of saffron, respectively as compared to control. There was no significant difference between the chemical fertilizer with nitroxin or biophosphate in terms of the effect on the traits related to saffron corm so the use of these fertilizers, as compared to control, increased replacement corm weight, replacement corm size, and bud number per corm by, respectively, about 35, 60, and 40% on average. The chemical and biological fertilizers improved the content of crocin, picrocrocin, and safranal of saffron stigma. The best results were obtained from the use of chemical fertilizers, although no significant difference was observed between this treatment and the nitroxin and biophosphate treatments. Overall, the results of this three-year experiment show a very high response of the saffron plant to the simultaneous use of manure and biological fertilizers and, therefore, it is possible to replace chemical fertilizers with organic and biological fertilizers in saffron cultivation to implement organic agriculture and achieve acceptable quantitative and qualitative yields in areas similar to the experiment location. [Display omitted] • The effect of manure on the saffron traits was significantly positive. • The combination of manure and biological or chemical fertilizers improved saffron crop. • The combination of manure and chemical fertilizer or biophosphate improved saffron stigma quality. • Biophosphate and nitroxin biofertilizer improved saffron yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]